| Lance peeled his clothes off in the darkness, anxious to rid himself of the acrid smell of cigarette smoke that envolped his body. His eyes stung with the threat of sleep and he collapsed into his bed, wishing he'd never even bothered to go to the club with Joey in the first place. It just made him more miserable. Justin had warned him not to go, told him he'd be sorry. Lance hated when he was right, and snorted with distaste. He had stripped down to his boxers and curled under the sheets, closing his eyes. Sleep was so close. He took a deep breath and prayed for it to hurry up and take him. Just as he felt himself drift off, loud moans and squeeking bed springs brought him back into consciousness. "Dammit!" he muttered, throwing his hands over his ears in a failed attempt to block the sounds. Lance rolled over and wrapped his pillow around his head. A continuous dull thudding pounded against his wall. "Oh for the love of..." He jumped to his knees and slammed his fist on the wall behind him several times, hoping the occupants would get the hint and be more quiet about their romp. The noise subsided almost immediately, and Lance grinned half heartedly. He laid back down and inhaled deeply, closing his eyes once more. Minutes later, his door creeked open. "Hey man, sorry about that." Lance opened one eye and saw Joey standing there, clad only in a towel and a devilish smile. Lance nodded and rolled over. He heard his door close, and seconds later, laughter erupt from the room next door. Sighing heavily, he tried to relax and fall asleep. He thought of Joey's beautiful girlfriend, who was, incidently, his assistant at FreeLance and was home in Mississippi. Home in Mississippi, while her rat of a boyfriend is here bringing home N Sync groupies. His frustration was consuming him, and he was pissed off at not just Joey, but himself for letting her get involved with his flirtatious, and unfaithful friend. He remembered when his mom had hired her. He fell for her instantly, not just for her beauty, but for her personality, and kindheartedness. He had asked her to join him on tour for a few weeks to iron out plans he had for a summer talent search, figuring it would give him an opportunity to express his feelings for her. It had backfired the instant Joey met her. Lance had watched in horror as he became smitten with her, turning on that sugary charm, wining and romancing her in a way no one had ever seen Joey do before. Within days, she was hooked, and they were a couple, crushing Lance. Now Lance laid in his bed at their Orlando compound, not believing that Joey was stupid enough to put his relationship in constant jeopardy by being with these women. She deserves better than him, better than this. She deserves loyalty, and faithfulness. I would never do this to her, never! Lance didn't feel like sleeping any more. He swung his legs over the bed, and stood up, grabbing shorts and a tank and putting them on. I should have told her how I felt, then this would never have happened. Why didn't I? What's wrong with me? He stormed downstairs to the kitchen and sat on a breakfast stool, cradling his head in his hands. The clock read 3am and the group had a morning recording session planned for an upcoming promotional event. Frustrated and tired, Lance warmed up some milk, a trick his mom used when he was a kid and had trouble falling back to sleep. The clinking of the pans caused JC to awaken, fearful of a prowler, or worse, a crazed fan. He crept into the kitchen, armed with a bat. "Who's there?" he called. "Just me," Lance replied, turning to see JC positioned behind the door, the bat poised above his head ready to strike. The sight made him laugh. "What the hell were you gonna do with that?" "Jesus, Lance, it's 3am. Why aren't you sleeping?" JC rubbed his tired eyes, putting the bat down. "I could have killed you with that you know." Lance snickered and took a sip of his milk. JC pointed at him. "You need to go back to bed. I don't want any half assed studio recordings. We only have one day to get it done." Lance nodded. "Gotcha boss. I'm heading for bed now." He passed his friend and climbed the steps, pausing outside Joey's room. He frowned, wanting to talk to him, yell at him for screwing around on the sweetest girl around. He was contimplating what to do when the door opened and the girl Joey brought home backed out, bumping right into him. She let out a surprised gasp. "I'm sorry," she breathed, clutching her heart. "I didn't think anyone would be up. I was just leaving." She carried her heels in her hand and smiled at him. "It was nice to meet you though." He cocked his eyebrow at her. He had figured her to be a clinger, and was shocked that she wasn't spending the night. Never the less, he nodded at her. "Same here," he lied, watching her as she wiggled her way down the stairs and out the door. JC bounced up the stairs, glancing backwards at the figure that had just passed him. "Who the hell was that?" he asked, unhappily. Lance shook his head and pointed to Joey's room. "Damn, he's gotta chill," JC frowned, going back into his own room. Lance stood there silently, staring at Joey's door, wondering if he should go in and give him hell now, or wait until morning. He knew if he waited, his anger would subside, just like it always did when he was upset about something, and he'd never get his true feelings out. He finally knocked, waiting for an answer. When there was none, Lance pushed to door open with his foot and looked inside. Joey was snoring lightly, a sheet half covering his naked body. "Dumb ass," Lance grumbled, noticing a picture of Joey and his girlfriend on the dresser, in plain veiw. "Unbelievable!" he shook his head. He marched over to the bed, and poked Joey in the shoulder. "Get up!" he hissed. "Joey, get up!" Joey swatted Lance's hand away, still asleep. Lance didn't give up. He kicked at the bed, causing it to shake. "Joey, I gotta talk to you," he seethed. Joey mumbled something incoherently, and rolled over. Frustrated, Lance threw his hands up in the air, and left, promising himself he would stay mad, and pound Joey in the morning. Morning arrived with loud music blaring through the house. Lance kicked the covers off himself, and squinted at the clock. It was only 7am, and who the hell was blasting that music. Grumpily, he stormed to his door, flinging it open. He saw a very unhappy Justin standing in his door way, a killer look on his face. "Who the FUCK is playing that music so loud?" he screamed. Lance shrugged, and watched as JC exited the bathroom, his hands covering his ears. "Who's doing that?" he hollered. Joey poked his head out, and rubbed his eyes. Looking around at his bandmates, he laughed. "Chris?" he asked. Justin ran down the stairs, cursing loudly. JC and Lance looked at each other before tearing off after him, not wanting a fight to erupt this early. They flew down two levels to the studio area, where Justin had found Chris, the culprit, and was standing in front of him, ready to charge. Chris was laughing at him, never a good thing to do to Justin. Lance caught Justin around the waist, just as he started to pounce onto Chris. JC stomped over to the stereo and shut it down, shoving Chris. "Idiot!" Chris put his smile away, and shrugged. "What?" he asked. Justin's face was bright red. "I hate you!" he seethed. "Let go of me, Lance. I want one shot at him." Lance held on tightly, fearful that if Justin did get his hands on Chris, N Sync would be a four piece instead of five. "Chris for the love of God, get out of here so I can let him go. He's gonna kill you, he's actually gonna kill you if you don't!" Lance pleaded with his older friend, thankful when JC grabbed him and pushed him up the steps. Carefully, he let go of Justin who promtly collapsed onto the leather sofa and closed his eyes. Lance sat next to him, trying not to laugh. It wasn't funny when Justin got that look in his eyes, but one of these days they were all going to just let him have at Chris, no matter the consequences. "Why does he insist on tormenting me Lance? Why?" Justin kept his eyes closed, and unclenched his fists. "Don't take it personally. He woke us all up." Lance chewed on his lip, wondering if he should mention his problem to Justin. He was the only one he told his feelings to about Joey's girlfriend. Deciding against it, he stood up and stretched. "I'm going to make some coffee." Justin muttered something, and Lance took off up the stairs. Joey, JC and Chris were sitting in the kitchen. Joey was on the phone, whispering sweet nothings into his girlfriend's ear. Lance glared at Joey, and brushed past him to make some coffee. Joey handed the phone to him. "For you, she needs to ask you some questions about one of the audition tapes." Lance swiped it from him, and walked out to the back deck, sitting on a deck chair. His heart pounded inside his chest, and he felt so guilty about not being able to tell her what a chump his group mate was. There was no way he could break Joey's trust, even if it killed him not to. It was a golden rule, one of the reasons N Sync had made it so far. They just didn't do things like that to one another. "Hey you!" her cheerful voice floated over the line, making Lance's chest tighten. She was so oblivious to what Joey did behind her back. "Having fun down there?" "Tons," he remarked, sarcastically. "So what's up?" "Well, I may need to fly down there with these audition tapes. Your mom and I have been trying to work this out, but we can't. How long are you guys at the compound?" Lance's heart both soared and dropped at the same time. Having her come out was great, seeing her cuddle up with Joey was not. "Two more days," he replied. "Come down if you need to. We have to record today, then the next two days we're doing a new video. I'll have some time." She laughed. "And I'll get to see my gorgeous boyfriend on your dime!" Lance tried to laugh, but he couldn't. "Yeah, well, he'll be here too." He chatted with her for a few more minutes before hanging up. A strange burning in his stomach caused him to flinch. Justin appeared on the deck with him, a cup of coffee in his hand. "Here ya go," he smiled, handing it over, and taking a seat. "So you okay? Joey said you were talking shop with her." Lance nodded, staring out over the pond which graced the backyard. Actually, it was supposed to be more like a lake, but they dubbed it the pond since it had lilly pads in it. He sipped the hot liquid and winced as it hit his stomach with more burning. "I know Joey had someone here last night. JC told me." Justin stared at his friend, his blue eyes full of concern. "Man, did you talk to him yet?" "Naw, what am I supposed to say? You stole the only girl I think I can ever love and you don't give a shit about her so how about stepping out of the picture and giving me a shot?" Lance laughed sourly at the thought. Justin chuckled. "Well, that's a start! Come on, JC's having kittens in there. He wants to get started." He waited for Lance to pull himself up and they joined the others in the studio. It had been almost 4 hours and Joey still couldn't hit his mark. JC was stomping around furiously. "I told you! I told you not to go out last night. This is what I was afraid of!" Joey shrank back in his seat. He had a little bit of guilt about the previous evening, and had a hard time focusing on the vocal arrangement. He knew Lance was completely pissed at him, and he had every right to be. Rubbing his temples, he stood up and went back to the mic, ready to try again. "Ready," he called softly to JC, who sat behind the glass, managing the control board. The music began, and Lance leaned in for his part, Chris hit his mark, and so did Justin. Joey faltered, by only a second, but it was enough to throw it off. "Dammit!" JC growled throught the intercom. "Take a break, Fatone, and I swear if you don't hit this the very next take, I'm gonna kick your ass." Lance watched as Joey threw his headphones down and exited the room. A frustrated silence fell over the room. Justin plopped down on the overstuffed plaid chair in the corner and bit his fingernails. Chris picked up his game boy and started a new game. JC listened to the playback, a deep frown on his face. Lance wandered upstairs, and peeked outside. He spotted Joey throwing rocks into the pond, yelling at himself. He debated whether to go out there and give him hell. "Hello? Anyone here?" Lance turned and saw his assistant standing in the door way. "Hey Lance!" Lance hurried over to her, hugging her tightly. "Hey, hey," she laughed. "Easy there." She loved Lance's hugs, they were so secure, so true. "Everything okay?" she asked, sensing trouble. "Joey's not hitting his parts and JC is pissed off." Lance pulled back and studied the person in front of him. Her long, red hair was pulled into a twist, and her green eyes were shining with a happiness reserved for the thought of seeing her boyfriend. He stared at her wistfully, motioning to the pond. "He's out there," he commented. She nodded, handing over the manilla envelope that was in her hands. She stepped happily outside to comfort her boyfriend. Lance watched her. He shook his head, opening the envelope, figuring it would divert his attention from this situation. He looked over the items inside and aimlessly walked around the room. Justin hopped in front of him. "Ready?" "Yup, Joey's outside. You wanna get him?" Lance asked hopefully. He guessed that they were out there making out or hugging, and that was one scene he didn't care to witness. Justin nodded sympathetically and went to retrieve him. Evening fell upon the compound and JC finally let them all go, satisfied with the quality of the recording. Lance went to the den and began to look over the audition tapes, reading notes, and watching the tapes. He wondered where Joey was, and what they were doing. Stop that right now Bass, your torturing yourself. She's not yours so give it up. Still, he was disappointed that she wasn't there, assisting him. After all, that was her job. She was on company time and she should be there. As if she read his mind, she popped into the den, and situated herself across from him. "Ready to get this stuff cleared up?" she asked, grabbing a pen and her notepad. He smiled at her. "Yeah, let's go." The two of them sat there, discussing the talent search, and the audition tapes into the night. Joey had peeked in around nine, asking if she minded him going out for a bit with Chris. She hadn't minded at all, seeing as she had work to do, and kissed him, letting him leave. Lance eyed him, pleading with him silently not to do anything stupid. Joey missed the look completely, and had taken off without a second thought. One am rolled around, and Lance sat up with her, their work done, chatting over some wine. He was enjoying himself greatly and didn't hear a drunken Joey enter the room until he scooped his girlfriend up in his arms. "Come with me woman," he growled, mischeviously. Lance rolled his head back with annoyance as she giggled and let herself be carried up the steps. "Night, Lance," she called to him, squealing as Joey threw her over his shoulder. "Night," he mumbled back through gritted teeth. It was all too much for him to deal with. He couldn't take it anymore. Angrily, he got up and forced his way into Chris' room. He knew that Chris kept a bottle of Vodka in his room at all times, and he searched through his friend's things until he stumbled upon it. "Aha!" he said, twisting the cap off, and taking a long, hard sip. He screwed his face up as the liquid burned his lips, and blazed a trail down his throat to his stomach. He took the bottle with him, and went outside to the pool, throwing himself down in a lounge chair. He sipped from the bottle almost constantly, feeling a numbness overcome him. "Damn Joey," he spat. "Damn her for not seeing him for what he is. Damn me for being an asshole. Damn Backstreet Boys, who's copying who?" He laughed outloud at the last comment, knowing he was getting truly shitfaced and not caring. "Don't touch me!" A voice rang out in the near distance, causing Lance to look up. His vision was a bit blurred, but he made out an angry figure storming out the sliding glass doors. He sat up, and narrowed his eyes to get a better veiw. Thr figure ran down to the pond and Lance blinked hard. It was her, but what was going on? "Come back here, let me explain!" Lance heard Joey's voice pleading in the darkness. He strained to hear, but they were too far away. Justin sauntered out, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He took one look at Lance and the half empty bottle of Vodka, and laughed. "Drowning your sorrows huh buddy?" Lance closed his eyes and laid back in the chair. His mind was spinning, and he struggled to re-open his eyes, remembering that Chris said when you're drunk, closing your eyes makes it worse. He glanced over at Justin, who had taken the alcohol, and was taking a swig. "Dude, they're fighting big time. Joey has scratch marks on his back, and she found them. It looks bad." The chair toppled over, as Lance sat up way to quickly, his heart leaping. "Justin, for real? Don't lie." Justin took another sip and shook his head. "Apparantly, Joey didn't look in the mirror after his sexcapade with that girl last night. I was in my room when I heard the screaming. She is royally pissed off! She was up there throwing stuff at him. I looked out to see what was happening, and almost got clocked in the head with a picture frame." Lance picked himself up and chewed on his thumb. He wished he hadn't decided to drink because he'd really like to be clear headed right now. He should have had some faith in Joey's stupidity. Of course he'd get caught eventually. Now he just had to decide how to proceed. His stomach rolled nervously, and he hoped he wouldn't hurl. He watched in the distance as he saw her shove Joey into the pond and storm back into the house. Justin was watching him. "Dude, now would be a good time to go to her." He smacked Lance in the back of the head. Absentmindedly, Lance rubbed the spot, sure if he wasn't drunk, it would have hurt. He rushed into the house and searched for her. A small sob came from the bathroom, and Lance approached carefully. Clearing his throat, he knocked gently. "Can I come in?" he asked. She opened the door, falling into his arms. "Scratches," she cried. "That son of a bitch cheated." Lance stroked her hair and held her tightly. "Why Lance? Why do I fall for the biggest assholes around? What is wrong with me?" She pulled back a bit and started at her boss. "I'm such a looser. I should have seen it with him. Mr. Player." Lance stared down at her tear stained face and tried to hold himself in check. He wanted to kiss her tears away, promise her his love and his heart, and take care of her forever. "Guess I picked the wrong guy again," she sniffled. They heard Joey bang on the door. Lance cracked it open a bit. "Go away," he whispered. "She needs time." Joey tried to protest, but Lance was firm. Finally, he gave up and slammed into his room. He returned his attention to the emotional wreck on the floor. "Come on," he said, lifting her to her feet. "You can stay in my room." She thanked him through the tears, and he laid her down on his bed. As he covered her up, he leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Will you stay with me Lance? I don't want to be alone right now." He nodded, trying to hide his pleasure at her request, and climbed in next to her, wrapping her up in his arms. She snuggled down next to him, and he felt the wetness of her tears through his tee shirt. Sighing heavily, he cradled her, allowing her to cry until she fell asleep. Exhaustion overtook his body as well, and he closed his eyes, drifting off with her by his side. Lance woke to the ringing of his phone. Looking around, he noticed that she was still in his bed, still asleep, and looking like an angel. The phone rang again, and he grabbed it quickly. "Hello?" he whispered, not wanting to wake her, but not wanting his head to throb anymore than it already was. His mom was on the other end, wanting to know what they had decided to do about the tapes. He disentangled himself from the sleeping figure next to him, and crept out onto his balcony. He saw Joey sitting at the pool, and told his mom he'd talk with her later. He hoped the light of day wouldn't change what happened the previous night. "Morning," she said softly, rubbing Lance's back gently. He turned to face her. Looking into her innocent green eyes, he felt himself stop breathing. She stared up at him, sadly. Peering over his shoulder, she spotted the object of her anger and frowned. "It's over," she stated simply. "I'm all done with him." Lance sighed, wanting to take her pain away. He gathered her up in a hug and held her. "Did I ever tell you how much I love your hugs?" she whispered. Lance chuckled softly. "No, I don't think you ever have. It's nice to hear." He kissed the top of her head, planning to send her back to Mississippi to work and recover from Joey. He knew that she would come around to him someday, and planned on waiting. He would be be the love that she dreamed of. Kissing her head once more, he lead her back inside, away from Joey, away from the pain. |
| ..he always looks around, his eyes wander round, he doesn't see you like i see.. |